Financial Services

The Division of Child Welfare, Financial Unit is comprised of the Title IV-E program and Maintenance of Effort, along with Contracts and Grants. If you have any questions regarding the Financial Unit, please contact Les Cowger, Manager at 303-866-6480.

Due to declining federal revenue, specifically Title IV-E revenue, the Colorado Department of Human Services and Colorado Counties formed a workgroup to study how Colorado could slow down this decline and maximize federal revenue. The group worked with an outside consultant to explore different areas where IV-E revenue could be increased. This provided a great opportunity for the State and Counties to partner, and every participant was able to give valuable input. Over the course of approximately two years, the group explored various areas to increase federal revenue, including:

Case Counts Reporting

Trails/Ad Hoc Reporting

Purchase of Service Contracts/Direct-Charge of County Training and Staff/RMS & Cost Allocation Plan

Licensing Issues

Title IV-E Eligibility Handbook Changes/Training

CW/DYC Process Review

Adoptions/Trails Changes

Targeted Case Management

Policy/Procedure Changes

Fifty-nine recommendations were suggested to maximize federal revenue. Of the fifty-nine, forty are either implemented or in the process, four were tabled for further study, and fifteen will not be implemented. The recommendations addressed such issues as the number of children in out-of-home placement who were determined IV-E eligible, reporting needs for State and County staff, claiming federal revenue from contracts and staffing, and training needs.

In Colorado, public funding of county child welfare programs is a mixture of federal, state and county revenue. In recent years Colorado has experienced a decline in state and federal revenue for funding child welfare services at both the state and county levels. If an increase in federal IV-E funds can be identified, both county and state program services will be more stable. Because Title IV-E is an open ended federal entitlement, it is the focus of this assessment. This means that if the state or county provide an allowable Title IV-E service or activity, the US Congress must appropriate the federal share of paying for the service. This analysis deals with at least 9 critical activities that impact federal reimbursement. It is based on interviews with selected staff and a review of various Colorado policy, statistical and practice documents.